Got to think Sherman's chances are not good either. Browner was adamant about his innocence. 3 DBs with two testing positive on the same game day has me wondering if there are even others in the DB room that need to watch themselves?

FlyingGreg wrote:In the grand scheme of things, this is good news. I'd rather absorb the loss now than in the playoffs. We aren't playing dynamic passing teams down the stretch, and I think we can survive.

This.

Tru2RedNGold25 wrote:Us as Niners fan have every right to rep Niners all day everyday when we have the hardware to back it up do can u guys say that???

Sucks he's out, but if he was really taking a banned substance it's his own fault (same for Sherman). Glad they will be staggered, but I would honestly rather they both just get it overwith, unless Sherman can drag this out until next season completely.

Will I wrote:I'm ok with this. Got to believe the front office had their hand in orchestrating the timing and figuring out which one they want to appeal and which one to lose right away.

The only way the players would allow this is if the players were willing to plead guilty.

Lets remember this is four unpaid games for the players

The next suspension for PED's is a FULL SEASON!!!!

There is no way the players allowed the team to say don't fight this for the best of the team.... Now if they are both guilty I could see them saying ok we will do the staggered approach after the Bears game

There is always a possibility of taking over the counter stuff and getting something not allowed so by having this four game suspension these guys are on thin ice for the rest of their career - this is something really major for them well beyond just the four games.

No issue with the suspension - they got tested and apparently were guilty get them suspended

I love our front office. They just decided that Tru should be good this week, Thurmond can take over for browner, and string out Sherman till post season, and then draft a corner for Sherman's suspension next year.

Of course this is all pure hyperbole and speculation, like everything else on these boards.

Go Hawks!

"I don't know why anyone thinks the NFL is going to start the season with a rematch of one of the most lopsided Super Bowls of all-time.

smashmouth59 wrote:I love our front office. They just decided that Tru should be good this week, Thurmond can take over for browner, and string out Sherman till post season, and then draft a corner for Sherman's suspension next year.

Of course this is all pure hyperbole and speculation, like everything else on these boards.

Go Hawks!

Yeah but not having Sherman for the playoffs is going to suck. Honestly I think I rather have Sherman miss the remaining four regular season games and have him back for the playoffs.

Maybe this means earl won't have to be deep so often since Thurmond is faster than browner and doesn't need the over the top help as much. Besides, I hope the bears game makes PC realize he needs to keep Sherm lines up on allstar WR all game like Marshall and now Fitz. I'm excited to see Jeremy lane out there.

CANHawk wrote:Now I suppose Sherman is left to lawyer up and dig in hard to drag his appeal out until after the season ends. Good strategy.

Funny, that's exactly how I was thinkingit should be played. Keep them bothe for the Bears game, then take one suspension now and try to delay one until next season. I think the court which has jurisdiction (wasn't it always Judge Doty in Minnesota or something?) has the power to set aside the suspensions until any case is heard. Just settle the case at the start of neext season. Didn't that starcaps thing get strung along for monts? Mind you, that was under the previous CBA.

Unless Sherman/the team is absolutely certain something is gonna give during his appeal process, I almost wish he'd just drop it and start his 4 games now so we could have them both for the playoffs. If we assume Sherman isn't a unique case and his suspension will be upheld after the weekend, and that it then boils down to either having Sherman versus Arizona or having Sherman in a potential playoff game, I'd roll the dice on the second option.

That being said I have full confidence in WTIII. Interested to see what Lane can do, because I don't have a ton of faith in Maxwell as a cover guy and Trufant makes me cringe

Last edited by ErikG803 on Wed Dec 05, 2012 1:18 pm, edited 1 time in total.

ErikG803 wrote:Unless Sherman/the team is absolutely certain something is gonna give during his appeal process, I almost wish he'd just drop it and start his 4 games now so we could have them both for the playoffs. If we assume Sherman isn't a unique case and his suspension will be upheld after the weekend, and that it then boils down to either having Sherman versus Arizona or having Sherman in a potential playoff game, I'd roll the dice on the second option.

Agreed. I figure his idea is to stagger this thing out as long as possible.

Not too worried about this - Browner is good but he was overrated last year because he happened to have a lot of interceptions. How many bad penalties did he commit? And off the top of my head I remember him totally botching a play against Washington on a duck that Rex Grossman(!) threw into the end zone towards the end of the game.

I fell off my couch laughing when we played the Rams on MNF and Gruden said he thought he should make the Pro Bowl. I know he made it, but again, it was due to his inflated interception total.

Look at his horrible coverage on that pass that Bennett should have caught on Sunday. I know Sherman botched the play to Marshall at the end of the game, but that was a bad snap decision, not bad coverage.

who knows, the opportunity that presents itself, may be a star will be born whoever gets to play this weekend to replace Brandon Browner. Never know what to expect, but I like the always compete mantra and I guess it has to bear fruit in some fashion. I think having new guys start at home is much better than to start in Toronto.

Hasselbeck wrote:Am I weird for having confidence in Thurmond and Maxwell? I don't know.. just have a sinking feeling one of these guys will be a LOT better than people anticipate.

I don't know if I'm confident. But I don't see it as an end of the world scenario by any means. I haven't been exactly thrilled with Browner a good portion of this year. He looked pretty silly on multiple occasions in Chicago. Thurmond, Trufant, Maxwell, and Lane are a definite step down. But I think it's not unreasonable to think one or two of them can step up to the challenge and not get embarrassed. Pete's always talked up guys like Maxwell and Lane. Saying they like them as players with potential. If the rest of the defense is able to play well, it's not ridiculous to expect backups to be able to fill in without a terrible drop off.

That's one of the positives of having a good (for the most part) defense. It's a lot easier for young, unproven players to step in and contribute. Like Malcolm Smith in Chicago playing for Leroy Hill. He didn't light the world on fire. But he also wasn't asked to do anything more than fill a role in a unit with other good players.

Hasselbeck wrote:Am I weird for having confidence in Thurmond and Maxwell? I don't know.. just have a sinking feeling one of these guys will be a LOT better than people anticipate.

It's reasonable to be confident in Thurmond. He has the skills. Health is his main problem. (Hence why you don't have to have a "sinking" feeling. It's a good thing!)

I'm hoping we have another diamond in the rough with Maxwell, but I'm not getting ahead of myself. Still, if we can generate pressure with the front four at home, it'l cover some issues with our secondary.

Also (not directed at the above), I think the reason Browner is out now is that the NFL denied his appeal. That's about the only thing I can think would be the cause of this news.

I like Thurmond. His injuries have been frustrating but I have no doubt about his abilities when healthy. He played a great game against the Giants last year as the Slot DB and his rookie year did well when starting for Trufant or ??? against the Cardinals. Sherman can thank ET and fate for getting his chance last year in the Browns game.

Thurmond is a starting caliber DB. He should be able to hold up his end. It is the next guy, when Sherman's appeal fails that is the question. Seems like it will be Lane because I doubt they move Trufant out to corner if/when he heals up from his hammy. That puts Maxwell in the slot. Good thing they have opened up the offense, I could see the scoring average going up against the defense.

I have no concerns about the regular season, only the playoffs. And if I did, I will keep them to myself.

I am with the Doc. Press requires a certain athletic fit, but is also simpler coverage in a lot of ways, we will be OK. Now, in the playoffs, when we will most assuredly be facing some really good QBs, then I will be more worried.

drdiags wrote:I like Thurmond. His injuries have been frustrating but I have no doubt about his abilities when healthy. He played a great game against the Giants last year as the Slot DB and his rookie year did well when starting for Trufant or ??? against the Cardinals. Sherman can thank ET and fate for getting his chance last year in the Browns game.

Thurmond is a starting caliber DB. He should be able to hold up his end. It is the next guy, when Sherman's appeal fails that is the question. Seems like it will be Lane because I doubt they move Trufant out to corner if/when he heals up from his hammy. That puts Maxwell in the slot. Good thing they have opened up the offense, I could see the scoring average going up against the defense.

I have no concerns about the regular season, only the playoffs. And if I did, I will keep them to myself.

I doubt Maxwell will play slot. I think Lane holds that down and Maxwell bumps out to the edge. he's built more like Sherman and Browner so I think he's more suited to the outside.

Defensive secondary is Pete's forte. It's his biggest area of knowledge and the place he's proven to be most resourceful. I'm sure that all the kids we have lined up behind the starters have amazing potential. T3 was a starter, Maxwell has looked pretty good when we've seen him, Lane seems to have amazing athletic ability and looked really good in pre-season, we know what Roy Lewis can do, Trufant is still a pretty servicable veteran. I think we'll be okay and for the silver lining edition, we might even get another Richard Sherman "where the hell did THAT guy come from" out of this before it's all said and done.

What CAN said. Pete knows DB's. I recall an interview with him earlier in the year where it basically sounded as if he thought the world of Maxwell and Lane. I know Pete sounds that way about everyone. But think about it. Sherman was drafted in the 5th round. Maxwell and Lane were both 6th round picks. Maxwell and Sherman were drafted in the same draft, and most people initially lumped them together as project cb's. Nobody should be expecting another Sherman. But it's not crazy to think they could end up players for this team. I trust Pete's eye at the position.

drdiags wrote:I like Thurmond. His injuries have been frustrating but I have no doubt about his abilities when healthy. He played a great game against the Giants last year as the Slot DB and his rookie year did well when starting for Trufant or ??? against the Cardinals. Sherman can thank ET and fate for getting his chance last year in the Browns game.

Thurmond is a starting caliber DB. He should be able to hold up his end. It is the next guy, when Sherman's appeal fails that is the question. Seems like it will be Lane because I doubt they move Trufant out to corner if/when he heals up from his hammy. That puts Maxwell in the slot. Good thing they have opened up the offense, I could see the scoring average going up against the defense.

I have no concerns about the regular season, only the playoffs. And if I did, I will keep them to myself.

I doubt Maxwell will play slot. I think Lane holds that down and Maxwell bumps out to the edge. he's built more like Sherman and Browner so I think he's more suited to the outside.

Byron Maxwell has been plagued with chronic hamstring problems since his arrival in Seattle. Sadly, as well as he has played on special teams, he hasn't been able to be available from week to week despite the snap limitation. Until he and the training staff find a way to manage the problem, Byron's future is uncertain.